THOMAS PODVIN’S FREELANCE WORK
Freelance writer - translator - Editor

"When your city is no longer your city, history can turn the right man to the wrong choice." With its opening sentence, Everlasting Regret hooks the viewer and for the next 115 minutes never lets go. And what a history it is, though the quote is misleading. This is a woman's tale set in Shanghai over a 40 year period, a period of marvelous historical change. Hong-Kong singer/actress Sammi Cheng plays Wang Qiyao, in her best role to date, taking her from a young beauty-pageant winner in the glamorous 1940s to her days as a simple housewife and mother in the post-Mao area. Released in the Chinese mainland as To Live, To Love, the film is based on Wang Anyi's Changhen Ge, an influential, award-winning novel written in the 1990s. Both the movie and the book shine with nostalgia. In the film the city's past is wonderfully recreated by Hong-Kong director Stanley Kwan and production designer William Chang (in large part responsible for the beauty in films by Wong Kar-wai). Everlasting Regret is influenced by both Wong's In the Mood for Love and Zhang Yimou's To Live, but in the end it is a work that stands on its own, an exquisite and bitter tale of a woman, that like Shanghai itself, is like no other.
Shanghai Film Studios

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
December 2005 issue

In this sequel to 1998's The Mask of Zorro – a vehicle for Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones – little remains of the original legend of Zorro but the title. Zorro was a California folk hero, a noble, yet modest, man who fought against injustice. Johnston McCulley first introduced the character in a serialized story The Curse of Capistrano in 1919. A number of TV-series and films have related his adventures since, including the notable 1957-59 TV-series Walt Disney's Zorro and the 1975 feature film Zorro, starring Alain Delon.
In this version, Zorro is full of himself: macho, arrogant and selfish. As such, Banderas is more exasperating than ever. What's more, the attempts to modernize the myth, however admirable, fall victim to just about every cliché and obvious emotional triggers imaginable. Of course this spoils the pace of an already very long adventure (2:10). Clearly, this movie is aimed at the youth market, full, as it is with too broad humor, a far too predictable plot with childish subplots, a showy hero, a cardboard baddy and overly-theatrical, unrealistic swordplay. Fun for the kiddies, maybe, but no laughing matter for adults.
Columbia Pictures

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
December 2005 issue

It's been 100 years since China's first film, The Battle of Dingjunshan, essentially a recording of a Chinese opera performance, appeared on the silver screen. In the decades since, the medium has had its share of difficult times, but there is much to celebrate. Tributes have been extensively organized in China and the rest of the world; the 62nd Venice International Film Festival, for instance, opened and closed with contemporary Chinese movies and featured a retrospective of classic Chinese films. And in October this year, the City University of New York organized an international symposium and a retrospective of more than 30 Chinese movies. Professor Ying Zhu, who teaches cinema studies in New York, coordinated the event. The Shanghai-born expatriate, author of Chinese Cinema during the Era of Reform, offered that's a short history of Chinese cinema.

that's: How would you describe the evolution of Chinese cinema?
Ying Zhu: Tumultuous, yet inspiring.

that's: What are the most important periods in Chinese film history?
YZ: Chinese films are divided into six generations. The first generation was the pioneers of Chinese cinema, such as Zhang Shichuan (Burning of the Red Lotus Temple, 1928) and Zheng Zhenqiu (Orphan Rescues Grandfather, 1923). The second generation includes 1930s/1940s left-wing filmmakers who cultivated a realist tradition blending Classical Hollywood with the tradition of Chinese performing arts (Wu Yonggang's Goddess, 1934). The third generation consists of both the second-generation disciples such as Xie Jin (Two Stage Sisters, 1964) and the self-taught left-wing filmmakers of the 1940s.
The fourth generation was the first generation of professional filmmakers, including Wu Yigong­ (My Memories of Old Beijing, 1983). They received formal film training in the late 1950s, early 1960s, under the socialist educational system. The fifth refers specifically to the 1982 graduating class of the Beijing Film Academy and includes Chen Kaige and Zhang Yimou; famous for making experimental art films in the early to mid-1980s, they challenged the socialist-realist tradition. Finally, the sixth generation is a group of internationally-known young filmmakers from urban centers who appeared during the post-Mao era (Jia Zhangke with Platform, 2000).

that's: How would you describe the Golden Age?
YZ:Historically, there were two 'Golden Ages', the pre-war 1930s and the post-war 1940s. In the pre-war phase, the emergence of the leftist Lianhua Company revived national cinema and successfully pushed for the industry's early institutional restructuring. Leftist films achieved an astonishing critical and popular success with many classic movies (Street Angel and Crossroads). The post-war phase (1946-9) witnessed an output of films of artistic quality and popular appeal despite ideological divisions (Long Live the Mistress and Crows and Sparrows).

that's: And more recently?
YZ:The arrival of Chinese cinema's Art Wave/New Wave in the early to mid-1980s is certainly a "Golden Age" with the Chinese fifth generation films creating critical splashes all over the world. From the mid-1980s until the early 2000s, the Chinese film industry entered a recession. Several factors contributed to this downturn, including privatization of film infrastructure and competition with cable TV, video and Hollywood films.
However in 2004, for the first time in decades, China produced more than 200 movies and the total industry revenue increased by 66 per cent to nearly USD 435 million. Domestic film production, distribution and exhibition fields benefiting from new government regulations have permitted private and overseas investment in the cash-starved industry. Most significantly, domestic Chinese film receipts exceeded those from foreign films for the first time since 1994. Feng Xiaogang's A World Without Thieves and Stephen Chow's Kung-Fu Hustle earned handsome profits. Despite relatively small film output and rampant piracy, Chinese cinema looks to be at the dawn of yet another Golden Age.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
December 2005 issue

Cent ans après sa création, le cinéma chinois tire son épingle du jeu

Cette année, le cinéma chinois a fêté son centième anniversaire. L’industrie cinématographique a connu des hauts et des bas au cours de son siècle d’existence. Des bas avec l’invasion japonaise dans les années 1940 qui a considérablement diminué le nombre de productions, ou la « révolution culturelle » dans les année 1960-1970 pendant lesquelles bon nombre de studios étaient en « pause ».

Après cette période tumultueuse pour le septième art, l’Académie Cinématographique de Pékin a ré-ouvert ses portes en 1978 accueillant des étudiants pour la première fois depuis 10 ans. Et quels étudiants ! On compte parmi eux Zhang Yimou et Chen Kaige. Cette promotion est aujourd’hui connue comme la « cinquième génération ».

Ce sont ces réalisateurs qui dans les années 90 ont permis au cinéma chinois de traverser les frontières et de recevoir les récompenses les plus illustres. On pense à ces premiers films montrés à l’Ouest, Adieu, ma concubine de Chen Kaige qui reçu la palme d’or en 1993 à Cannes, ou Épouses et concubines de Zhang Yimou auréolé par la critique internationale.

Cette dernière décennie a en effet était favorable au cinéma chinois et à ses réalisateurs. Sa créativité et réactivité ont attiré bon nombre d’investisseurs d’Asie et d’occident. Ce qui a permis de produire de meilleurs films, plus internationaux et donc de séduire un nombre plus large de spectateurs.

Si les films de Chine continentale sont particulièrement appréciés pour leur peinture judicieuse de la société chinoise, ceux de Hong-Kong attirent le spectateur grâce aux arts martiaux et scènes d’action spectaculaires. Ces films étaient auparavant distribuées dans un nombre de salle restreint, principalement dans les Chinatown, et n’ont jamais réellement atteint une distribution grand public.

La vitalité du cinéma de HongKong a cependant montré des signes d’essoufflement dans les années 1990, et notamment suite à la rétrocession de l’île à la Chine en 1997. Ce qui est surprenant de constater est que cette diminution de la productivité (de 200 films/ans à environ 60 films/an) a eu un impact positif et conséquent sur les relations entre les trois principaux centres cinématographiques, Shanghai, Pékin et Hong-Kong.

On a commencé à s’unir pour produire des films bénéficiant l’industrie entière, avec une qualité hollywoodienne comme Kung-Fu Hustle de Stephen Chow ou Seven Swords de Tsui Hark.

Ce dynamisme n’est évidemment pas resté sans réponse à l’Ouest et Hollywood a tenté de recruter des acteurs, réalisateurs et techniciens confirmés pour des projets américains. Michelle Yeoh et Zhang Ziyi ont terminé Memoirs of a Geisha à Los Angeles, Gong Li travaille sur une séquelle du Silence des agneaux appelé Lector Variation.

Ce succès et cette qualité de production croissante ont aussi donné suite à des co-productions Est/Ouest et autres deals de distribution avec Columbia Tristar-Asia ou Miramax. En 2000, Ang Lee réalise son Tigre et Dragon, révélant au monde, et avec succès, le premier film de sabre chinois (wuxiapian) « internationale ». Zhang Yimou suivra plus tard avec Hero, puis Le Secret des poignards volants.

Ces films, qui ont rencontré un succès planétaire, prouvent que si goût et passion sont de mise, une histoire typiquement chinoise peut traverser toutes les frontières.

(c) Shanghai Scene
Chief editor: Dave Taylor
November 2005 issue

Richard Meyer’s biography of Ruan Lingyu is the first text in English devoted to China’s most famous film-star of the silent era. By the time of her death in 1935 China’s ‘Greta Garbo’ had crammed a remarkable number of 29 films into just 24 years. Ruan specialized in portraying ill-fated characters, most notably The Goddess, in which she played a single mother who turns to prostitution to support her son. As Meyer points out, Ruan’s own life was far from savory. One married lover whittled away her money in gambling dens; another, a violent tea merchant, refused to marry her.
After her suicide in 1935, she became a symbol for women’s liberation and the denunciation of China’s feudal society. Meyer succeeds in painting a portrait of Ruan against the backdrop of the era in which she lived and worked. A good primer for anyone interested in this remarkable actress from a long lost era.
Hong-Kong University Press
Available at www.hkupress.org & www.amazon.com

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

Poet Ruth Padel’s remarkable travelogue blends prose with a personal diary, poems, lists and maps. It plays on so many angles that it’s sometimes hard to figure out whether it’s an awareness raising book or a tiger enthusiast’s private diary. Padel’s journey through 11 Asian countries begins in Kerala, India and takes in the forests of Siberia, the hermit Kingdom of Bhutan and the jungles of Sumatra. Central to her journey is her quest for tigers, an endangered species which has captured mankind’s imagination throughout the ages. Padel’s descriptions of her excursions in search of Panthera tigris are both captivating and educational. Not since Sandy Balfour’s Pretty Girl in Crimson Rose has an author so deftly weaved a personal memoir with a leitmotif (crosswords in Balfour’s case, tigers for Padel).
Time Warner Book Group UK

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

Classical music is often regarded by the young generation as outdated and dusty. Well, they should listen to multi-platinum British soprano Sarah Brightman. This classical collection assembles an accessible list of tracks culled from her albums Eden and La Luna. Brightman proves that, if smartly produced, time-defying tunes like “Ave Maria” or “Serenade” will appeal to all generations. Indeed, classical melodies are brilliantly and tastefully re-orchestrated with modern beats and arrangements that cater to today’s tastes. Classics proves that any form of music, if well packaged, can be mass marketed, though purists will probably be appalled.
EMI

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

Rap’s a very polymorphic music genre. It ranges from raw and minimalist, to well-polished more complex forms, from tunes sung by kids in suburb streets, to ferocious gangsta rap, to songs spit out by young yuppies from downtown. This release is another kind, the very first rap album in Shanghainese. Not only well produced - signed by Sony-BMG after all – it’s also enjoyable at first contact even for those not grasping the subtleties of the Shanghai dialect. Heavy bass, plenty of swear words, cool female vocals and catchy choruses – with odd English bits – Shanghai Rap features an array of talented and young local artists, Bamboo Crew, Blakk Bubble, Pimp Q et al. Heavily influenced by the North-American Mcs (Eminem, DR.Dre, 50cent and the likes), many Shanghai artists copy their styles or sometimes even sample their tunes, yet still manage to deliver sweet, pop-ish rap. It may not be gangsta-style, but its home-style at least.
Sony-BMG
Available at http://shanghaining.com/features/SHrap/


(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

4 Da Loverz/Sharam Jey/Hinote Records
This release took DJ Sharam Jey five years to produce, and it was worth the wait. He was once a crusader on the dance-music Promised-Land Ibiza. Lavish in electronic beats, with a strong pop feel, the release is as fine for night booty shakes as for a daytime fix. Don’t miss this wealth of club anthems.

Human After All/Daft Punk/EMI
French duo Daft Punk recorded their third international album at their Paris home studio in just six weeks. Beats, loops, scratches and remixes sometimes, disappointingly, keep the melodies from emerging. Fortunately, three massive tracks “Rock Robot” “The Brainwasher” and “Television Rules the Nation” save the album.

Destination Lounge San Francisco/Various Artists/Hinote Records
The “Destination Lounge” collection proposes international soul/downtempo music with jazzy, chilled and soothingly delightful tracks and includes a stylishly packaged guide of San Francisco (or Bali). The package features info on the local night-scene including top-notch nightlife destinations, plus a profile of talented local artists.

Pyramid In Your Backyard/Praful/Hinote Records
Praful’s urban music explores Indian and Brazilian sounds with a hint of jazzy and funky sax thrown in new and groovy tracks. Dance and chill vibes spread from the mixing tables to the speakers, eventually seducing the ear drums. Pyramid in your Backyard produces haunting tunes in your head.


(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

Guanzhou Chief editor: Christopher Cottrell
November 2005 issue

While expats might regard Kenny G (G for Gorelick) as an abomination, the Chinese, ladies in particular, consider his music first-grade foreign stuff. Male listeners probably won’t understand this infatuation, but they likely know nothing of the G-spot, either. Indeed, G’s sax sound is mellow, jazzy, sensual and instinctively attractive, turning on any female listener. He did study with the master – at age 17 he performed in Barry White’s orchestra. For this 15th album, the Grammy-Award winner saxophonist has invited the world’s most prestigious singers (Barbara Streisand, Earth Wind & Fire…) to sing, while he blows the pipe on good-old tunes that have ben lingering for years in the Western collective psyche. Kenny G will probably make many other albums after The Duets. He may blow forever; Kenny holds the Guinness World Book record for playing the longest note ever, an E, for over 45 minutes…
Sony-BMG

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

Nowadays, to launch a superstar in China is a hazardous business and no one wants to take the risk. The Super Girls TV-show producers found a riposte. They sold many teenagers a show with complete strangers and wannabe-stars, and aired a several-week long competition sparking a nationwide mania. No pirate copies or mp3 could ever top that, and the benefits made with commercials, sponsorships and SMSs were phenomenal. Super idea, everybody wins - producers, sponsors, fans and Super Girls.
Here’s the offspring; an album made by the ten finalists, including a VCD with MTVs, that cost virtually nothing to produce and distribute as massive pre-order profits have already been made.
Fresh, young, as talented as any Chinese pop idols - for what it means – the Super Girls deliver eleven super sweet, neatly studio-produced pop songs.
A Super Boys show is on its way.
Meika Music

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

http://www.chinese-furniture.com

A marvelous, eccentric site for aficionados of classical Chinese furniture. Webmaster Curtis Evarts was a former curator at the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture in Renaissance, California. Consequently, he knows his ta from his chuang. The fact that Evarts uses this site to plug his own consulting services is forgivable since he has compiled an invaluable resource for collectors and dilettantes alike. Not only does the site provide a useful point of contact for collectors and dealers but it also hosts an event calendar, furniture bookstore, historical data, information on museum collections and a newsletter. One of the site’s most appealing pages is devoted to the “Piece of the Month” which is an educational appetite-whetter for those expats willing to break the money-pig. The site is beautifully illustrated with images of prints from hand scrolls and ancient paintings putting the various pieces into both a social and historical context. Who knew that the folding stool (deck chair) was once used for mounting horses?

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

http://www.blogherald.com

Blogs (or web logs to the uninitiated) have been with us since the late ‘90s so it’s no wonder that a site such as The Blog Herald has popped up to act as a news and information source for all things blogging. The site goes about its business with a great degree of solemnity providing statistics, studies and columns on its “blogosphere” as well as other interesting tidbits. Take this one for instance: “60 percent of Chinese bloggers are female because girls are more emotional while boys are busy playing online games.” Yes, you heard it here first (that is unless you’ve already visited this site). The Blog Herald itself is a blog, having been selected by technology consumer CNet.com in its list of the Top 100 blogs. Like most other blogs, it will no doubt draw an audience of like minds and preach to the converted.

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

Anthony Zimmer is a rich, smart gangster hunted by the formidable and feared combined forces of the French police, ex-KGB members and the Russian mafia. But he’s a slippery chap whose only weakness seems to be his sexy thirty-something girlfriend Chiara (Sophie Marceau). Like the Kaiser Soze character in Bryan Springer’s The Usual Suspects we never get to meet Zimmer, though we learn about him through Chiara. Marceau (Braveheart, The World is Not Enough) is spot on with her performance, at times reminiscent of Linda Fiorentino’s femme fatale in The Last Seduction, though she’s let down by the plot which is too straightforward. What’s more, director Jérôme Salle seems to like to show as many gratuitously naked bodies as possible (or at least scantily clad ones). Still, the cheap thrills, plus Marceau, will leave the film’s male audience captivated throughout, if only for two hours.
TF1/Studio Canal

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue

As if the world hasn’t enough real-life terrorism, here we go, once again, with a new terrorist-loaded season of 24. Kiefer Sutherland is back as Jack Bauer and, this time around, he must deal with not one, but several threats to national security. All to be done and dusted within 24 hours of course. Ho hum. The series has become all too predictable – it’s easy to tell when someone is about to be tortured or killed, all for the sake of the nation, if you please. That said, the show does have its moments: clock-ticking, gripping scenes, and paralyzing tension are conveyed with great effect through clever editing and hand-held cameras.
But the main draw here is bad guy Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy), a villain whose cunning puts him one step ahead of Bauer. Strange that such a charismatic terrorist should feature so prominently on the hawkish Fox network. Maybe they’re trying to tell us something.
20th Century Fox Television

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
November 2005 issue